Well damn
by Ellerocks92
Summary: What if your single mother got married to a jerk? Normal, right? Well, how would you feel when you figure out you were a one nightstand mistake and mom's new husband wanted you gone? It gets worse? Of course! Who knew my god-father, who my aunt talked so highly about, was Whitebeard himself? Rated T just to be on the safe side with the language; there might be some curses in there.
1. Chapter 1

**What if your single mother got married to a jerk? Normal, right? Well, how would you feel when you figure out you were a one nightstand mistake and mom's new husband wanted you gone? It gets worse? Of course! Who knew my god-father, who my aunt talked so highly about, was Whitebeard himself?**

I had a rotten day at school. Again. You know the regular teasing about my abnormal red eye color. And yes, it _is_ natural. I was almost glad to go home!

Key word: almost.

I was welcomed home with an unwelcome scene. My mom and **step**-dad, making out on the couch.

"Oh, oh gross! Can you _please_ get a room!?" I exclaimed, feeling a bit of my nasty-ass lunch coming back up. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. Since, my parent, well I guess its _parents_ now, drink straight from the bottle.

Gross, I know.

Hearing a dulled thump and a pained groan. I turned to the two sex hounds, one who fell on his butt. He glared at me.

I raised an eyebrow, "what? It's not my fault you're both partially deaf. You both couldn't hear a bomb exploding right next to you, I mean; I _did_ slam the door to announce my presence."

They just glared at me and mother stood up and started cooing at the baby in the family. Steve. I pity anyone with the unfortunate name of _Steve_.

Turning and rolling my eyes, I sat down at the kitchen table, resisting the urge to gag. I heard _Steve_ walking toward me, but, really who couldn't? I turned to look at him when my neck was grabbed and my head slammed down on the marble counter.

Now, you're probably wondering if I had brain damage or if I did get a very bad injury why not just tell someone, you know get him in trouble. Well, because when I was younger, around five or six, my mom dated a marine who told her about an experiment that they were doing. Apparently, they were going to make the perfect weapon. They tried adults but because their bones already finished growing. It didn't work.

So, they were going to try a kid. They originally were going to use an orphan, but due to my mother's 'love' for the marines, she set me up. I was there, not quite getting what was happening, but they warned her that I might not make it out.

I remembered the man who said that. He was the one who was holding me at the time. His name was Ben. He was twenty. Eve (a super nice nurse there) was his girlfriend, and if he could he would have adopted me, and he tended to smile like cinnamon and gun powder, and his distance cologne, as I learned from him. From all the other nurses and officers, doctors, I only liked and cared for the two of them; the rest? Could go to hell for all I cared.

My bones were changed to some kind of metal; I was too young to really get it. They did something to me but all I know is that I can use the metal in my body as weapons. Between the spaces of my knuckles I could produce three blades. They're strong; unfortunately, if they break it also hurts me, since they're a part of me. But, lucky, for me, anyway, that rarely happens.

They're kinda thin but they work. I have them on both hands. Plus, it turns out that I can heal really, really fast. Like, if I get shot, the bullet would either get pushed out of my body (which usually happens) or it absorbs it, and I don't know what it does then. Either way, not a pretty sight. And my cuts heal, depending on the sort of wound it either heals fast or it could take longer.

Also, it _hurts_ when I get shot or wounded. But, the pain goes away, soon. But, I learned to deal with the pain. So, if I did tell someone, I'll have no proof since my proof already healed.

Anyway, back to reality.

"- Don't get all cocky, and blah, blah, blah…" apparently, he took my silence as submission, what an idiot. His guard and the strength he used (which wasn't much, I was just surprised) loosened, and I pushed up, whirled around and punched the moron in the face. He hit the floor hard.

While, he gapped at me, and rubbing his now sore cheek, wincing every now and then in pain, I relaxed in my chair, resting my arm on the back of my chair and smirked.

"Now, now what was it that you said, 'don't get cocky'? Maybe, you should listen to your own advice."

I advised, standing up, I walked past him and my mother who whispered, "Monster," as I passed. I just rolled my eyes at that. Opening the door, and grabbing my backpack, I glared at my mother who was cowering on the floor with Steve.

"If I'm such a monster, then why make me like this? And, if I'm the monster, then what are you?" I asked bitterly before walking out the door, slamming it and leaving.

Heading left, naturally, I started to jog to my secret meeting place. After a few minutes, I ducked into an ally, looking around and finding no one, I popped out my blades. (Is popped the right word? Maybe, slid out my blades might be better, oh well) Hooking, them in a crack and pulling up, the piece of stone lifted. Looking around again, and again, finding no one, I slid the stone away, to find a ladder leading down.

Dropping my bag down first, hearing a dulled thump, I stepped down a few steps; just enough to again check my surroundings, then sliding the rock over my head and back into place, leaving my in darkness.

Something shot out and grabbed my leg, causing me to yelp. It pulled me down, causing me to fall. Landing hard on my side, I looked up to see myself face to face with….

**Reviews = more chapters**

**Tips, complaints, compliments, are welcomed. This is my first _good _fanfiction, to me anyway. I couldn't figure out how to take my first _ever _fanfiction down and keep it. So, I kept up, so if you check on my stories don't expect it to be good. Like I said before tips, complaints are welcomed because I could use the help. Compliments are _definitely _welcomed! **

**From the author, Ellerocks92.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Previously: "If I'm such a monster, then why make me like this? And, if I'm the monster, then what are you?" I asked bitterly before walking out the door, slamming it and leaving. **

**Heading left, naturally, I started to jog to my secret meeting place. After a few minutes, I ducked into an alley. Looking around and finding no one, I popped out my blades. (Is popped the right word? Maybe, slid out my blades might be better, oh well) Hooking them in a crack and pulling up, the piece of stone lifted. Looking, around again, and again finding no one, I slid the stone away, to find a ladder leading down.**

**Dropping my bag down first, hearing a dulled thump, I stepped down a few steps, just enough to again check my surroundings. I slid the rock over my head and back into place, leaving me in darkness.**

**Something shot out and grabbed my leg, causing me to yelp. It pulled me down, causing me to fall. Landing hard on my side, I looked up to see myself face to face with….**

"You moron! Don't do that!" I yelled, punching the stomach of my laughing friend. "HA, HA, ouch! Ha, ha!" he said rolling on the ground, clutching his stomach in laughter and in pain. I sat up crossed legged and just glared at him.

He eventually stopped laughing. Wiping his eyes, he chuckled, lying on his back. Opening one eye, he looked at me; he sobered up pretty quickly at my glare. There are advantages and disadvantages to having red eyes.

Sitting up crossed legged across from me; he held his hands up in surrender. I sighed. "Cato, long time, no see," I finally said, deciding he had learned a lesson. I raised an eyebrow at him, who had been gone for a few weeks now.

Laughing, he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry, sorry! I've been busy," he explained, brushing his bangs out of his eyes. "Doing what exactly?" I asked, resting my upper weight on my crossed legs.

He grinned big, the whites of his teeth glowing softly in the limelight. Yes, there is light down here. There are some crystals that grow down here; we figured out pretty quickly that they glowed when in darkness, when we first found this place.

"I'll tell you when Hina-chan hooks up with us!" he said mysteriously. I raised an eyebrow. "Okay sure, well, shall we get going?" I asked him standing up. He laughed again, "You're dying to know, aren't you?" he accused playfully. The corners of his mouth twitched up in amusement.

"Well, I'll be lying if I said I wasn't curious, plus Hina-chan was worried about you, so we shouldn't keep her waiting, now should we?" I asked him, gesturing to an old stone wall. To anyone else, this would look like some kind of old cellar, not a tunnel.

He frowned, then smiled again. "No, we shouldn't!" he said leaping to his feet. I rolled my eyes, before kneeling down near the bottom of the old wall. To anyone else, this would seem like a normal brick wall, but then again to anyone up in the alley, the sidewalk would seem completely normal as well.

Sliding my blades out, I again hooked them into the wall on the left side. The palm of my fist facing right, I pushed to the right. A square piece of wall, slid, somewhat slow, to the side, leading into tunnel. I slid my backpack into the tunnel and lay on my back and slid my upper body halfway into the tunnel. Gripping a pipe Cato drilled into the wall, I pulled the rest of me into the tunnel. I grabbed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder while backing up to let Cato in, who then jammed the stone back into place.

Our group - Hina-chan, Cato-kun and I - discovered that the rebel soldiers long ago would use these tunnels to hide from the marines. They, of course, lost, seeing as there are still marines here, but lucky, their tunnels were never found, you know until us.

We found out that these tunnels ran throughout town. We use this to get extra food and supplies. Since most store owners refuse to sell Cato and me anything, even if we do have money; we usually don't though. Hina-chan on the other hand, since her dad is rather popular around town and has high connections, they have to sell her food and other stuff.

So we either send her, but why bother? We'll steal, because it's payback for all the shit they put Cato and me through, daily. Since some of these tunnels lead straight to some supply rooms, we just take what we need and store it down here.

Yeah, like squirrels. (As Cato, says.) And yes, the squirrels actually steal stuff from us and the rest of the town daily. The evil little critters.

Anyway, by now, we're half way down through the maze and Cato is humming. It's kinda annoying. The tunnel isn't really big, but it'll do. It's about an arm's length in the width. We kinda have to duck because the ceiling's kinda low. We're not chin to chest, luckily; we only have to duck slightly.

Adjusting my backpack straps, I looked back at Cato. The light isn't the best in here. I could only see a shadow of our figures down here. Well, unless we're close to the crystals; then we can see each other just fine. He ran his hands across the smooth stone till his fingers hit a grove in the stones. He hooked his fingers in it and slid it painfully slow to the right to reveal a lighted cove. I raised an eyebrow at him; usually I do that. He grinned and wiped sweat off his brow. "What? It's insulting to my manly pride to let a girl do all the strength lifting." I grinned, amused by the statement instead of insulted. I usually hated sexist comments. However, I know Cato meant no harm, just a joke. We stepped into the cove and into the sunlight, blinking to adjust at the bright light; some sunlight can light up in here from a crack in the sidewalk from the world above.

The lights didn't do Cato justice; he was handsome with a boyish look to him. He had dirty blonde with a messy kind of haircut and laughing blue eyes, which light up when he saw Hinata. I smiled sadly and looked at the wet ground, as my chest constricted painfully as Cato rushed to Hinata, who practically lighted up with joy and relief. Cato placed his hands on Hinata's hips and nuzzled her neck with a smile. Hinata giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. He must have muttered an apology because her lips moved and she gently pressed her lips against his.

Hinata looked over Cato's shoulder and smiled to me in a greeting. I smiled back and waved slightly. I adjusted my backpack again. Hinata was beautiful, I'll give her that. She had a midnight black hair; it looked navy blue in certain lights and a light blue eye color. She also had soft porcelain colored skin and full light pink lips. The lucky girl also had a drool-worthy body. However, she was also the sweetest girl in this entire town. And one of the smartest, too.

While I may have a crush on Cato (tell anyone and die painfully), I was happy for the two and I couldn't hate either of them. I walked up to the pair once I was sure the stone wall moved back into place. Hinata broke away from Cato, much to his disappointment. We could tell from his face and the groan he let out as he slipped his hands away from her hips. She giggled again, as I let another amused smile grace my face. She turned to me and placed her hands to her hips and glared slightly at me. I raised an eyebrow at her and dropped my bag carefully against some random wall. "What?" I finally asked as curiosity got the better of me. She crossed her arms over her more than generous chest. "What's wrong?" I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head to the side, "What do you mean? Everything's fine." I smiled at her, placing my hands on my hips. She gave me the infamous, I'm-your-best-friend-so-don't-lie-to-me face.

Charming, isn't it? Note the sarcasm. I chewed lightly on my bottom lip and moved my gaze to the mirrors above. Cato was the one who came with it, actually. By putting mirrors where the sunlight will hit depending on the time of day, we can reflect the light, and put more lighting in the room. The crystals just didn't cut it in the day. By the way, the sunlight comes from a small crack that leads to the world above in an alley. So, school sucked, it usually does, but the look on Steve's face when I smacked him just as to bring a smile onto my face.

"-omi? Hitomi!" I jumped and whirled my attention back to the worried couple. I smiled reassuringly, "don't worry I'm fine." I gave them an impish smile, "so far this day's has been pretty good." Cato raised an eyebrow. "Uh… Hitomi? You got ganged up by the other kids, hell _even_ by a teacher, bullied and insulted until both your physical and emotional self was bruised, literally, and you call that a good day?" I smiled and giggled and nodded, much to the couple's dismay who gave each other a concerned look.

I frowned in thought and cocked my head to the side, "well actually, not really," I perked up and smiled excitedly, "but! When I came… home, after a few gross events (I shuddered as I remembered the disgusting scene I walked into,) I ended up punching Steve in the face! That was pretty good. Certainly made my day." I declared with a nod. I swear, Hinata's and Cato's eyebrows reached their hairline before Cato suddenly grinned and clapped his hands together bouncing slightly in his spot like a little kid. "Seriously? Hilarious, I'm sure?" he asked, leaning over Hinata's shoulder with one arm wrapped around her waist and the other hanging off her shoulder, with his chin resting on Hinata's shoulder.

I smiled and nodded. He grinned and punched the air with a go girl! Hinata crossed her arms over her chest and gave the both of us an amused and disapproving smile. Suddenly Hinata frowned and straightened up, stepping away from Cato, causing us to look at her in confusion. She glared at Cato, "where the hell have you been, Cato!? Do you know how worried Hitomi and I have been?" She glared angrily at him her knuckles turning white as she clutched her sweater's sleeve tighter on her arm. I glanced briefly at what she was wearing; she wore a light blue loose turtle-neck, and dark blue denim shorts and light blue flats with white spots decorating both the hems of her sweater and her flats. Her midnight blue hair was in a high ponytail with her straight bangs just brushing the tops of her eyes; she had two strands of hair escaping her ponytail that framed her face.

He smiled sadly at the angry look Hinata was giving him, I know him well enough he hated worrying any of his nakama, much less his significant other, Hinata. I sighed and closed my eyes as I thought back to the pure panic and worry Hinata showed when we found out that Cato went missing.

~FLASHBACK! ~

_I counted the steps as I ran, breathing hard, as my boots made a soft clicking sound when they hit the tiled roofs. I slid to a halt as I reached a window that had a white balcony below. I crouched down and attempted to calm down my fast paced heart. Jumping down over the edge of the roof and onto the balcony, I shifted my weight to the balls of my feet and stood up, scratching my head and turned when I heard the balcony's doors slam open. Hinata rushed out wearing dark jeans and a light pastel blue tank top. She had an unzipped white hoody on as well. She looked at me with a hopeful expression on her face which quickly fell when I shook my head no. She looked down biting her lip. A telltale sign that she was upset and/or nervous. She clutched a light blue crystal that turned white halfway down all the way to the pointed tip of the crystal, tightly in her hand as she clutched her sweater at her side near her waist. _

_I smiled reassuringly as I walked to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She looked up through her bangs, her long hair brushed gently against my hands. Another sure sign that she was worried. Hinata almost always keeps her hair up or at least pins back the front of her hair to keep out of her face. Now, she looks like she just brushed a comb through it and left it at that. _

_She probably did just that. I smiled slightly bigger and brushed some hair behind her ear while she sighed. I could see the mixed emotions on her face. The worry, the sadness, and the hope. She turned fully to me, "You saw nothing? Did you check the town square, all the alleys?" I nodded. "How about the tunnels? Did you-"She stopped mid-sentence when I covered her mouth with my hand, "Hinata! I checked all the places we thought he might be. I checked the alleys, the town square, the tunnels, and hell! I even checked your dad's jail cell! He isn't here." I snapped calmly at her. I stepped back and took my hand away. _

_She rubbed the bridge of her nose and ran a hand through her hair, "Not here? How can that be? He wouldn't just leave the island without telling one of us, would he?" she questioned more to herself than to me. I could practically feel the panic start to surface inside Hinata. I rubbed her shoulder soothingly, before snapping my attention to Hinata's door. My sensitive hearing could pick up footsteps heading toward here. I bent slightly down to Hinata's ear, tucking another strand of hair behind her ear, "Someone's coming, your dad most likely, since you did lock yourself in here all day." I said with a hint of a smile, she turned slightly to look at her double white doors. "I'll be back soon; while I'm away I'll keep searching. See you later." With that, I raced to the railing of the balcony. Using the momentum, I swung myself over the balcony railing and down to the ground. I rolled and jumped back to press my back against the wall underneath Hinata's balcony. I could hear the door opening and hearing Hinata, father's stern voice scolding Hinata about being outside barefoot and if she feels sick she should be back in bed where it was warm. I left the safety of the wall when I heard the balcony's doors close and lock with a click. I pushed off the walls and started racing toward the backstreets, hoping, and no, praying for Hinata's sake, that I found Cato, alive. _

_Because I know for a fact that if someone disappears, they're probably not coming back alive._

~ END OF FLASHBACK ~

I opened one eye to stare thoughtfully at the pair. Hinata was still glaring angrily at Cato, and Cato was either going to attempt to hug Hinata or he's going to do… actually, I'm not sure what he'll do. Cato dropped his hands to his side and raised hand to rub the back of his neck while switching his gaze to the floor. He looked at her and took a step and shifted his weight like he was going to step forward but instead took a step back holding his hands in a defense-surrender motion, letting his bangs to shadow his eyes. Hinata and I shared a look, before I stepped forward and grabbed Cato's shoulder in a tight grip and glared at him. "Cato," I started to say slowly, "where the hell have you been?" I asked quietly tightening my hand on his shoulder, which winced slightly in pain. He sighed and shifted his gaze from the floor to Hinata than back to me. Finally after a tense silence he reached a hand to my mine on his shoulder and gave me a firm squeeze and unhooked my hand off his shoulder. I allowed him, having a gut feeling he's going to tell us what exactly his been up to. He sighed and brush past Hinata and me walking toward the chairs in the back. He collapsed into his black leather armchair. Gripping the arms of the chair in a tight grip. Before releasing his grip he sighed and then ran his hands over his face and into his hair. Hinata and I shared another look before Hinata gripped her crystal in a tight grip and walked hesitantly toward Cato. I decided that to stay over here, Cato will be more likely to tell if there aren't a pair of red eyes glaring down at him. Hinata laid a hand on Cato's shoulder than yelped to my brief amusement when Cato grabbed Hinata and pulled her into his lap, tightening his grip on her waist. She relaxed hesitantly into Cato. I rocked forward into a step before deciding to step closer to the couple. I stopped a few feet away and finally asked Cato the question again. He let out a shaky breath and lifted his forehead off of Hina's shoulder. "Hitomi…you won't really like this but.." he looked me straight in my eyes causing my to raise an eyebrow and narrow my eyes, "I followed Steve and his friends."

"Why?"

"I heard they were planning something, so I hid in a barrel and followed them." I just blinked at him and nodded slowly for him to continue. "Apparently, they heard from someone that a big shot pirate is coming to this port. And there planning to…" he trailed off and bit his lip in anger, and tightened his grip on Hinata to the point where she gently loosened Cato's hands from her waist. He muttered a quick apology before continuing from where he left off. "They're planning to bargain with them. They can port here and get supplies in exchange for…..wiping out the red-eyed she-demon." I gave him a bemused smile which turned into a smirk, "a big shot pirate? Which one? The black cat pirates?" I mocked with a smirk. The black cat pirates are a group of lame-ass pirates who dress like black cats and try to act all bad-ass pirates.

There not very good.

Cato gave me a sharp look and shook his head no. "Not even close! They also said to take out the red-eyed demons friends; we need to go into hiding…or something!" he snapped visibly shaking in anger and/or fear. Maybe both. Hinata decided to join the conversation then, "Cato, Cato love? Whose coming? What's the pirate crew?" she asked stroking Cato's cheek.

He looked at both of us, giving me another sharp look that started to make my heart throb in worry. Cato took a deep breath and released it.

"Whitebeard's coming."

My heart plummeted.

**Thank you for all the reviews I got! I honestly wasn't expecting so many! Well there's the second chapter, how did you like it? Sorry it took so long **getting** it up. Well, you know; here's the usual**

**Reviews = more chapters.**

**Advice, tips, and such are welcomed. **


	3. Chapter 3

**AUTHOR NOTE! I'm so sorry it took so **_**long **_**to write this chapter! I started to write half of it and ended up getting writer's block when I went off to do something else and completely forgetting what I wanted to write. The usual author's note after the chapter below, I added some new things, so **_**please **_**read. I would like to thank mamc97nolongeranonymous**,** xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx,** **Vampirelover12100, Emz, Miss Doflamingo, valeries26, mars, Guest (whoever you are…),** **TypeWriter'sAreCool (thank you for your helpful info on my the first chapter, however I don't believe I'm going to change it based on a few reasons, the first being that I would have to change a good half of my story to fix it, and second because I'm more worried about writing more chapters, but I will keep your tips in mind for my future chapters,) and Lunacii; for reviewing to me, I never though I'll get so many viewers who like my story. I'll like to thank everyone who either followed or favorite my story as well. *Bows* so thank you. Btw, mamc97nolongeranonymous I thoroughly enjoyed your "shit's gonna happen. I hope Steve dies a painful death," comment. I hope so too, though he is like annoying painfully so son, since I **_**did **_**create him … So, you're just going to wait and see! (Look in the next view chapters… I might make one of my characters say it, if you don't mind…) **** Thank you and enjoy! **

**P.S, I do not own anything besides my OCs and how the story's heading.**

Chapter 3

I frowned and glared angrily at the smirking teen across from me. I shifted and tugged a strand of hair that curled lightly to my face. It was blonde; my hair color is now _blonde_. Don't even get me started on my _eye color_ now. I had to put blue contacts in. _C__ontacts_! I slouched into the wheelchair I was forced into. "I can't believe you guys made me do this…" I mumbled depressingly. Cato's grin widens. "Don't worry! You'll be _fine,_" he stated in a too cheery voice; he obviously was enjoying my pain. I straighten up when I heard footsteps and tried to smile. It wasn't helping that Cato was grinning at me like that. I thought about Steve when I punched him in the face. _That _brought a real smile onto my face. It also caused Cato to raise an eyebrow in confusion. I smiled slightly wider when I recognized the heavy footsteps that stopped outside the door. A heavy knock sounded a few seconds later. "Come in!" I said cheerfully after a minute of making sure everything was in place. The door opened to reveal a buff, tan man. I leaned against the wheelchair's back, placed my hands softly in my lap, and smiled at the man, "Captain, what do I owe this pleasure?" I asked. Cato groaned into his hands, while the Captain gave him a sharp look.

"We'll reach Crescent Moon Island (Cato, Hinata, and my home island,) in a few hours; I hope this trip's been well?" the man asked, mainly looking at me with his back to Cato. I nodded excitably, clapping my hands together silently. "Yes, Captain Shiro! This trip has been fun! You and the rest of the crew have made this trip very enjoyable for me, though it this is my first trip in a while; so what do I know?" I said sheepishly, holding a hand to my mouth in thought. The captain grinned; the scar at the corner of his mouth stretched slightly. "It's been a pleasure to travel with such a pretty young lady."

"What about me?" A grumpy voice asked entering our conversation. We turned to a frowning Cato. I raised an eyebrow at him, "Oh? So, now you're a pretty young lady? How rude of us not to have noticed." The captain let out a loud laugh, and wiped his eye with his finger, much to my amusement and Cato's displeasure.

"I still can't believe you're related to such a ruffian like him," he said with a frown, pointing at an offended Cato with his thumb. I raised an eyebrow at him, "You're telling me." I turned to smirk at Cato, who grunted and glared at me.

The captain grinned bigger and moved a hand to scratch his head under his mob of grey hair. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I have to return to work." I nodded and bid him goodbye, while Caro pouted and walked over to his bed before plopping down on his bed. I grinned and rolled my way near my bed, as the Captain let himself out and gently shut the door. I could hear him walking down the hallway as his footsteps faded.

"I can't believe you're my sister now, Hitomi," Caro stated, grumbling. I nodded in agreement and wheeled myself to the mirror over the dresser. I tucked a strand of hair over my ear and leaned back into my wheelchair while gazing into the unfamiliar and familiar girl in the mirror. I, of course, still had my skin tone and face shape but now… I was a blonde haired girl; a fairer shade than Cato's brown –blonde hair color and baby blue eyes. Something much different from my blood-red eye color.

"Oh! And Cato?" I looked at him from the mirror so I saw him turn to me and raise an eyebrow at me, in a silent what. "My name's Haruta, not Hitomi, now." He blinked and turned back to look at the creamy white ceiling. "Oh, right… You're going by your middle name now." He mused quietly. "Hmm," I mumbled in agreement before rolling to my bed and moving the blanket off my legs. I moved the quilt before sliding into my bed and getting comfortable. Yeah, you heard Cato right. I'm pretending to be a sibling of Cato, hence the change of appearance. While I waited to get sleepy enough to actually fall asleep, I thought back to when the three of us actually came up with this plan.

**~FLASHBACK~**

_ I sighed and leaned against the wall of the room before sitting down with one legged propped up. I felt my fingers twitch and I fidgeted under Cato's and Hinata's stare. "What?" I finally asked, snapping at the couple. Cato spoke up after a few seconds of awkward silence, "I don't think I've ever seen you so restless." He was observing me from across the room with his arms crossed over his chest and his feet propped up on a foot stool. I huffed and raised an eyebrow. "You're the one who was all panicky when you heard Whitebeard was coming. I can easily handle the villagers, but whitebeard? I have to be insane to think I could beat him." He just blinked slowly before moving his gaze to his lap, frowning. "Are we going to just let them kills us?" _

_ I turned to look at Hinata. She sat on her bed wrapped in her light blue colored fuzzy blanket. Yes, we moved locations; Hinata had to go home. Cato and I waited under a balcony to see if her father was home or not. If he was, then we'll have to come up with ideas by ourselves, but if he wasn't there, we could talk in her room. Luckily he wasn't in, so now, we're trying, and failing, to come up with good game plans. _

_ I snorted and look to across the room to my left away from their gazes. I tightened my grip on my pants leg, and gritted my teeth. "Like __**hell**__, I'm going down fighting, and I refuse, __**refuse **__to let you guys die because you risked everything to be my nakama." I could feel anger boiling in my gut at the thought of them attacking and trying to kill my friends just because they knew me, and accepted me for who I am, despite the rumors and the truths. _

_ I turned my attention back to my upset friends. "Hinata, Cato." I waited until they turned their attention to me. "If the Whitebeard pirates do attack us, I want you to take the first opportunity you have, and get the hell out of there. Do you understand?" I snapped at them when I saw their shocked expressions. _

_ Cato stood up and glared at me with his hands clenched tightly into fists. "What!? Hell no! We're not going to abandon you, just because some jackass thinks you're a demon because of that damn World Government!" he screamed at me, eyes blazing. I jumped to my feet, mentally noting that Cato's a good half a head taller than me before pushing that to the back of my head._

_ "And what are going to do!? Fight? Don't make me laugh. You may be a good swordsman but you can't take on Whitebeard's commanders! Do you want to die?" I snapped back at him, glaring at him angrily. We glared at each other for the longest time; just daring the other to say something. _

_ "Yes." _

_ I snapped my attention to Hinata, who stood up, letting her blanket slip from her shoulders, before looking at me with such determination that I faltered for a minute. _

_ "Hitomi…I know you well enough that you hate seeing the ones you love getting hurt, but…" She started out slow and gentle but suddenly glared at me. "Try to see us from our point of view. We don't want to see you get hurt either; you're very dear to us. And, like you, we refuse to just watch and let the one we call Nakama get hurt." She looked down and shook her head. "I understand that we could die there, but I rather die protecting a friend, than live knowing I let you die for us." I looked at Cato in a silent question. He nodded hard, frowning at me. _

_ I sighed and lowered my head, feeling the tension in me leave. I knew that no matter how much arguing I could to do, they weren't changing their minds. I nodded in defeat. "Fine, but we still need a game plan." _

_ "And more training!" Cato had to add his two cents. I nodded in agreement, trying to ignore the bad feeling in my gut. Hinata gave us, well more like me, a sly smile. Cato and I shared a look before turning to Hinata, each with an eyebrow raised. _

**~END OF FLASHBACK~**

Okay, so maybe rethinking those memories wasn't the best idea. Now, I'm all twitchy and nervous about the upcoming, most likely, battle with the Whitebeard pirates. I may have been trained by the World Government for four years of my life, heal at astonishing rates, and have my very own weapon that I can't possible lose in battle, but _Whitebeard_. People say that he's the strongest man in the world. And, apparently he's also the only one who tied Gold Roger, the _pirate king_, in a fight. That's kind of a scary thought. Well, on the plus side, he most likely won't be fighting but his commanders instead will.

That thought made me sit up. His commanders….huh? I wonder how many there even are. Didn't Hinata give me a notebook on the little information she had on them? I scanned the room the best I could in the lighting I had. I noticed a darker more rectangle shape lying on the dresser, near the mirror. How the heck, did I not notice that earlier? Shrugging, I removed the covers from on top of me and slid back into my wheelchair. Wouldn't want the risk of finding out that I can actually walk. That might be a _bit_ hard to explain. I rolled myself to the dresser. Picking up the book, I realized that:

No matter how much I don't want this to happen, this was going to happen and I had a very high chance at dying along with my two best friends in the world.

I refused to let my friends die; perhaps I could….make the deal with them?

Is that too insane? Shaking my head, I opened the book to reveal the index. Raising an eyebrow, I felt a small smile creep onto my face. Hinata sure is organized. I skimmed through the names and raised both of my eyebrows to my hairline. White beard had _sixteen _commanders. That was a lot. Maybe too much…I shook my head frowning; I can't let fear or doubt control me now, too much was at stake. Apparently, Hinata managed to dig up some valuable information on the group. Some had a few pages based on them. I sighed and tried to relax my now tense muscles. Hinata was really something. Anyway back to the task at hand. I read down the list of the index, noting that the first division commander was written in a darker lettering. So, I should be worried about him? Okay.

(The Index, below,)

**Division Commander #01: "Phoenix" Marco**

◾Division Commander #02: "Fire Fist" Portgas D. Ace

◾Division Commander #03: "Diamond" Jozu

◾Division Commander #04: Thatch

◾Division Commander #05: "Flower Sword" Vista

◾Division Commander #06: Blamenco

◾Division Commander #07: Rakuyo

◾Division Commander #08: Namur

◾Division Commander #09: Blenheim

◾Division Commander #10: Curiel

◾Division Commander #11: Kingdew

◾Division Commander #12: Haruta

◾Division Commander #13: "Water Buffalo" Atmos

◾Division Commander #14: Speed Jiru

◾Division Commander #15: Fossa

◾Division Commander #16: Izo

Fire Fist? Phoenix? And Flower Sword? Were those bounty nicknames or something? The must be, because I can't think what else they could be… Maybe I should read about this Marco guy first. I tapped my fingers on the hard cover of the notebook. If he's the first division commander, wouldn't he be like the first mate or something? I don't know much about how this pirate crew is positioned but…don't most pirate crews have the Captain, of course, and then the first mate. My question is who's the strongest of the sixteen division commanders? They're the ones I should look out for, and the ones Hinata and Cato need to avoid. I looked at the sturdy black leather journal, brushing against the cover with my fingers as I thought; biting my lip in thought.

Wait a minute….. Haruta? My eyes flickered up to the name Haruta, who was the… twelfth division commander. Huh…what a weird coincidence. Curiosity bubbled beneath the surface of me, and I flipped to the light green plastic marker that I just noticed labeled with the number 12 on it. I'm pretty absent minded now, as you can tell. I recognized Hinata's neat beautiful handwriting instantly; being born a noble woman has their perks, I guess. She had the info written under six categories; **Appearance, Weapons, Fighting Style, Gender, Devil Fruits **and **Commands.**

The info on Haruta was interesting, and while isn't hard to explain, I'll just read it off the book info.

**Appearance:**

Haruta has a crop of short brown hair, blue eyes, and is fairly short. Haruta wears a green and white 16th century style outfit with white tights and carries a saber whose hand guard resembles the puffy shoulder straps of Haruta's shirt.

**Weapons:**

Haruta wields a decorated saber with a purple hilt. The hilt is decorated like the top sleeves she wears.

**Fighting Style:**

Appears to prefer a fighting style based on agility and speed, rather than strength, as Haruta was seen jumping around when performing attacks. One demonstration of Haruta's level of swordsmanship is her ability to cut through steel.

**Gender:**

Female. She was complaining about how there wasn't enough girl members.

**Commands:**

As the commander of the 12th division of the Whitebeard Pirates, Haruta has authority over the lower-ranking subordinates.

**Devil Fruits:**

None. We saw her get pushed into the water as a joke and seeing on how she swam to the surface; she doesn't have a devil fruit.

And with that, I knew more about this Haruta girl. So, she prefers speed instead of strength. Okay, I can work with that. And no, devil fruits; I suppose that's a good thing. Once someone eats a devil fruit, you can't tell what devil fruit group they have until

They tell you themselves.

You figure it out in battle.

Or

You see the fruit they ate and look it up.

Devil fruits have three types: Logia, Paramecia, and Zoan. Seeing as I don't have devil fruit ability, I didn't really see a point in researching about them. However, I do know the basics of the three groups. A Zoan devil fruit user had the ability to transform into any animal…I think. The user can also have a human-hybrid form and/or have few more forms. It depends on the devil fruit, apparently. I also heard from the World Government that the Paramecia devil fruit category is the most usual. A Paramecia devil fruit user can gain super human abilities or powers. Most people think that I ate a Paramecia DF (devil fruit, I grew tired of saying that so much,) because of the World Government. I usually just allow them to think that. If they believe, sea stone can stop me, I'm I'll just gain the advantage. The last and rarest is the Logia DF. It can allow the user to transform into an element, allowing them to be them intangible or indestructible. I winced at the thought of one of the Commanders being Logia.

I clutched the now closed journal tightly in my hands; what if Hinata and Cato died but I survived because of my healing abilities? What if I lead my friends to their death? Could I live with myself after that? No, no I couldn't. I would go on a rampage and kill everyone who brought them to their deaths, and after that, I would kill myself. I could feel frustrated and sad tears burn the back of my eyes as I gripped the black journal in my hands, before I crushed it to my chest as I thought that this could be the last thing I'll have of Hinata. It's kind of ironic that if Hinata died, the journal, the last thing I had of Hinata, would be on the thing that killed her. I placed the journal in my lap and stroked the cover gently.

I jumped when someone placed a warm hand on my shoulder. Turning, I blinked owlishly at a tired looking Cato who smiled at me. I wordless held my arms out for a hug. He wrapped his arms around me and under my legs, surprising me when he picked me up. I managed to keep a hold on the journal. He walked back to his bed and laid down in it with me in his lap. He covered us with the blanket and ran his fingers through my hair. These were one of the times I let my guard down, even if I was with my friends. It felt good too. I moved my gaze to Hinata's journal, and shifted so my back was to Cato's chest. I let Cato take the journal from me and open the journal. He opened the book to Marco the Phoenix, and we wordlessly read it together. The silence was comfortable and reassuring. The reason this Marco guy is nicknamed Phoenix is because he ate a Zoan DF which allowed him to turn into a big flaming blue bird. A phoenix to be exact. Sighing, I cuddled myself more comfortably against Cato as sleep started to catch up to me. I could feel a yawn coming on as well. Cato lifted me up slightly only to lie down on his side and draw me into his body warmth. He muttered something to me, but I couldn't catch it as sleep already took me willingly.

"KA-BLOWIE!" Both Cato and I jumped straight up, wide-eyed and confused. Cato threw the blankets off and….

**AUTHOR NOTE! **

**The author note above was merely an apology letter for not updating in a while. I wanted to inform my lovely reviewers that I worked hard to make this chapter interesting and so on. This chapter is eleven pages long and 3,406 words long, including the author notes. Remember, that the more reviews I get the more likely I'll update. More reviews = more chapters. **

**Good reviews = faster updates.**

**Writer tips = keeping them in mind and trying to write better chapters.**

**Bad reviews = Me not caring. **

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